TP1

Another day on smooth seas. After breakfast we had to line up to retrieve our passports. I had lost my “receipt” (just a piece of paper with my name on it) so I had to sign the ship’s copy TWICE – once to acknowledge receipt of the passport and once to declare that I had … Continue reading »

Another beautiful day at sea. This time in the Banda Sea. Yeah. I had never heard of it either, but it is the name of a large body of water near Indonesia. We started the day in the casino. Marlene won a bunch – she is nearly even now – but I lost $50, down … Continue reading »

No casino before breakfast as the casino is closed when the ship is docked. So we had breakfast then went ashore. Indonesia is a very large country – over 250 million people. But it is a third world county. Bitung is definitely a third world city. The sidewalks are crumbling (some manhole covers are missing … Continue reading »

The original itinerary had us arriving in Bitung on Day 24. But because we skipped the Philippines, we arrived in Indonesia around 4 pm on Day 23. More on that early arrival later. Marlene and I again started the day in the casino. The slots were unforgiving this time. I lost $50 (down $200 for … Continue reading »

We slept in later than usual, getting down to “crafts” at 8:30 am. This is a freebie gift of some little craft package that some people actually do as a way to pass time on sea days. But more people stow them away to give to their grandchildren when they get home. I got a … Continue reading »

I was very happy to wake and find the seas were calm and the day was sunny. I didn’t need another nasty day at sea. Marlene and I started the day in the casino. She did fine but the machines were unfriendly to me: I lost $50 and am now down $300. After breakfast I … Continue reading »

A nasty day at sea. We sailed to the east of Typhoon Koinu but felt the effects of its recent passage – 8- to 10-foot seas, After breakfast and some (poorly performed) trivia contests I was feeling nauseous and went up to the cabin. And slept most of the afternoon. I skipped lunch entirely and … Continue reading »

My father was stationed in Okinawa for a time near the end of WWII so the island was interesting for personal reasons. But I suspect that the Okinawa I experienced was very different than the one he experienced. As usual, we had no excursion planned so we just took the free shuttle to the center … Continue reading »

This was a very quiet sea day. Until it wasn’t. After breakfast, I spent some time in the casino (just long enough to lose $30, down $200), and played some cards, then returned to the cabin and spent several hours blogging. That took me to dinner (filet mignon – very good but not as good … Continue reading »